For the urban Instagrammers of New York, every night the shadow-laden city becomes their muse. They are photographers, daredevils, and urban explorers. They climb the tallest skyscrapers and bridges, capturing breath-taking images, often times from aerial views, risking arrest, injury, and even possible death.

What would make anyone take such risks? For Antonio Jaggie (@Kostennn) and @Demidism it began as the thrill of urban exploration itself. The desire to see the unknown places in the city they called home. They started to bring their cameras along on each adventure, gathering tips and tricks from other urban photographers, and posting their photos to Instagram. Eventually they gained thousands of followers and started to become famous within the urban explorer community.

For Lindsay Nunnery (@Lindsay_Nunnery) and James Lanning (@JamessLanning), photography started as a casual hobby, but once they teamed up they decided to take it to the extreme. They've climbed the Williamsburg bridge together and were even arrested by a SWAT team and dragged through Times Square in handcuffs. It hasn't slowed down their urban Instagramming though. They continue to capture New York's true grittiness, sharing the stunning images with their followers.

Victor G. Thomas (@Vic.Invades), says urban exploring is the most exciting thing he's ever done. He got into photography by photographing skateboarders, which involved a lot of the same mentality as urban exploring. You often find yourself in places you're not suppose to be, uncovering parts of the city that even many life-long residents have never taken the time to discover.

These urban explorers don't mind the risks involved, as long as they can keep doing what they love. The adrenaline rush and the thrill of it all makes them coming back for more each time.